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Italy Offical Disputes U.S. Claim in Death from AP 
New York Times, March 8, 2005 Italy Offical Disputes U.S. Claim in Death By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Filed at 4:41 p.m. ET ROME (AP) -- Italy's foreign minister said Tuesday that American troops killed an Italian intelligence officer in Iraq by accident, but he disputed Washington's version of events, demanding a thorough U.S. investigation of the shooting and that ``the culprits be punished.'' Foreign Minister Gianfranco Fini told parliament that the car carrying the intelligence officer and an ex-hostage to freedom was not speeding and was not ordered to stop by U.S. troops at a checkpoint, contrary to what U.S. officials say. However, he also dismissed allegations that the Friday shooting that killed Nicola Calipari was an ambush -- a claim made by the released hostage, journalist Giuliana Sgrena. ``It was an accident,'' Fini told lawmakers. ``This does not prevent, in fact it makes it a duty for the government to demand that light be shed on the murky issues, that responsibilities be pinpointed, and, where found, that the culprits be punished.'' Calipari was shot as the car carrying him and Sgrena, who had been kidnapped Feb. 4, headed to the Baghdad International Airport. Sgrena and another intelligence officer in the car were wounded. The shooting outraged Italy and rekindled questions over its involvement in Iraq, where Premier Silvio Berlusconi sent 3,000 troops. But the government has made it clear it is not considering a withdrawal following Calipari's killing. Fini said the car was traveling at no more than 25 mph. He said a light was flashed at the car after a curve, and gunfire -- lasting 10 or 15 seconds -- started immediately afterward, disputing U.S. military claims that several attempts were made to stop the vehicle. Italy's ``reconstruction of the tragic event ... does not fully coincide with what has been communicated by U.S. authorities,'' said Fini. He added that the ``sequence of acts carried out by the U.S. soldiers before the shooting'' is one of the main discrepancies. In a statement released Friday night, the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division, which controls Baghdad, said the vehicle was ``traveling at high speeds'' and ``refused to stop at a checkpoint.'' A U.S. patrol ``attempted to warn the driver to stop by hand and arm signals, flashing white lights, and firing warning shots in front of the car,'' it said. ``When the driver didn't stop, the soldiers shot into the engine block which stopped the vehicle, killing one and wounding two others.'' Fini said the hypothesis that the shooting was the result of an ambush, as suggested by Sgrena, is ``groundless.'' The journalist said the shooting might have been intentional because the United States opposes Italy's policy of negotiating with kidnappers. The White House has dismissed the claim as ``absurd,'' and two Italian prosecutors investigating the killing said there was no evidence pointing to a possible ambush, according to news reports. In Baghdad, a video purportedly made by the insurgents who kidnapped Sgrena claimed the group did not receive any ransom for her release. The tape showed footage of Sgrena shortly before she was freed, and the claim was made by a man off-camera reading a statement. It was not possible to verify the authenticity of the tape, which was dropped off anonymously at the offices of Associated Press Television News in Baghdad. The voice on the tape said Sgrena was released with no ransom ``even though we were offered that.'' It added that ``the resistance refuses (to be paid). We hope that all journalists around the world would be released.'' A written statement shown on screen and read by the man off-camera alleged that U.S. forces deliberately targeted Sgrena. ``America has cheated its close ally Italy by attempting to assassinate the Italian journalist Giuliana Sgrena,'' the statement said. ``The resistance has learned from its private sources in the heart of America that the CIA decided to kill the journalist.'' CIA spokeswoman Anya Guilsher said the notion is ``absurd.'' ``It is ridiculous to suggest anything along those lines,'' she said. The Bush administration also rejected suggestions that U.S. troops deliberately opened fire on the car. ``Nothing could be further from the truth,'' State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. Fini stressed that the U.S. government is an allied country that has promised full cooperation. On Monday, Italy bade farewell to Calipari at a solemn funeral in a Rome basilica that drew 20,000 mourners. Several Rome newspapers said a lack of communication between Italian intelligence and U.S. forces may have led to the gunfire. La Repubblica daily, citing unidentified U.S. military sources, said Italian officials did not send notice of Sgrena's liberation or of the type of vehicle she was being carried in. But Fini said that Calipari, an experienced officer who had negotiated the release of other hostages in Iraq in the past, ``made all the necessary contacts with the U.S. authorities,'' both with those in charge of airport security and with the forces patrolling areas next to the airport. |